Beech A35 accident near Maricopa, Arizona, February 11, 2024
On February 11, 2024 at about 5:30 pm local time, a 1949 Beech A35, registered N691B, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Maricopa, Arizona (Ak-Chin Rgnl airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to properly configure the landing gear and verify its position before landing, which resulted in a gear-up landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 11, 2024 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- Maricopa, Arizona · Ak-Chin Rgnl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech A35, built 1949 · all A35s on the register
- Registration
- N691B · no longer on the register · serial D-1694
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated that she put the landing gear switch in the down position when the airplane was midfield on the downwind leg of the traffic pattern and lowered the flaps on the base turn. The pilot also stated that she did not look at the gear position indicator before landing. Security video captured the airplane on short final, and the landing gear appeared to be in the retracted position. The airplane subsequently landed gear-up, substantially damaging the fuselage. Following the accident, the landing gear switch was found in the down position, and the main landing gear doors were partially extended, with the inboard edges of the doors contacting the ground. Postaccident examination revealed no damage to the left main landing gear door, scraping damage to the extended ridge on the right main landing gear door, and scraping damage to the aft and outboard edges of the nose gear doors. The observed damage was consistent with all the landing gear being fully retracted upon landing. An operational check of the landing gear system revealed no anomalies. The accident is consistent with the pilot’s failure to configure the landing gear and to verify its position before landing.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Landing gear not configured during landing defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of checklist › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Task monitoring/vigilance › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 356 hours in all; 101 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 206 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 25, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Passenger
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Passenger
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,540 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 4, 2023; 863 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental E225-8 (piston); 881 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: KCHD Chandler AZ at 4:55 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 04/2, 4,751 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.21 inHg
- Observation at 10:56 am from KCGZ, 8 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KCGZ 111756Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 08/04 A3021 RMK AO2 SLP234 6//// T00830039 10083 20011 53013 PNO $
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number WPR24LA086.